WASHINGTON (AP) — Joe Biden faced a test on Thursday that he has avoided so far this year. Solo press conference Answering questions from White House reporters.
The news conference was aimed at reassuring Democrats, allies and persuadable voters disappointed by this year’s election that Biden still has the strength and stamina to be president, after he has sought to defend his weak and staccato performance in the election. June 27th debate Against Republican Donald Trump This is seen as an anomaly rather than evidence that at 81 years old, he lacks the vitality and commanding presence that the nation expects from its commander in chief.
Trump made at least two notable gaffes — he referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as “President Putin” at an event earlier in the day, and then, when asked by a reporter about Kamala Harris, called her “Vice President Trump” — but he also provided details about his efforts to preserve NATO and his plans for a second term. And he stressed that he has no plans to drop out of the race, despite growing calls from Democrats in Congress for him to step down.
Highlights from the press conference include:
He got an important name wrong, but he remained defiant.
Perhaps Biden’s biggest gaffe of the press conference came when he opened by calling Vice President Kamala Harris “President Trump” and saying he picked her because he believed she could beat President Trump.
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Even before the press conference, Biden had gotten key names wrong. NATO Summit And expectations for his performance plummeted.
“Ladies and gentlemen, President Putin,” Biden said while introducing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is obviously not Russian President Vladimir Putin. The gaffe immediately caused consternation, and Biden, upon regaining his composure, turned to Zelensky and said, “President Putin? Are you going to beat President Putin?”
But when a reporter brought up the “Vice President Trump” comment and pointed out that the Republican front-runner’s campaign had already promoted the gaffe, Trump became defiant: “Listen to what he has to say,” he said, then walked off stage.
House Democrat Jim Himes of Connecticut issued a statement minutes later calling on the president to back down.
President Joe Biden announced a deal for NATO nations to come together to support Ukraine, calling the country’s leader, Volodymyr Zelensky, “Putin.”
“This job needs to be finished,” he insisted.
It’s a delicate game between the president and vice president, with many Democrats openly hoping to nominate Harris to succeed Biden. Biden has not acknowledged the tension, only bringing her up in response to tough questions about whether he thinks she is capable of succeeding him.
Citing Harris’ record as a prosecutor and U.S. senator, Biden said, “I wouldn’t have chosen her if I didn’t believe she was qualified to be president.”
But when questioned later, Trump acknowledged that he had moved away from a promise he made in his 2020 campaign to “build a bridge” to a new generation of Democrats. “What has changed is the gravity of the situation that I inherited,” he said, without mentioning the vice president.
He said over and over, “I have to get this job done.”
The press conference ended with Biden being asked directly if he would step down for Harris if polls showed she had a better chance of beating Trump. “I wouldn’t step down unless they said she had no chance,” Biden replied, before adding in a stage whisper: “None of the polls say that.”
He claimed results spoke louder than words.
Biden tried to make the point that what he does is more important than how he talks about it.
Biden praised the just-concluded NATO summit for elevating the U.S. “Have you ever seen a more successful meeting?” he told reporters, who had only seen the meeting through prepared remarks.
Listing statistics such as 800,000 manufacturing jobs being created under his administration, Trump detailed how inflation has eased from its 2022 peak and said world leaders would want to trade their economies for America’s. He also said he would cap rent increases for tenants whose landlords participate in the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program.
It’s the same argument Biden has made in previous street speeches, but it hasn’t necessarily helped his popularity. Biden’s team believes that continuing to repeat it will help resonate with his supporters.
He spoke about his work with NATO.
Biden began his news conference by speaking at length about NATO and its value to the U.S. – one of his biggest political points of contention against Trump, who has openly been skeptical of the alliance and has even suggested he would encourage Russia to attack NATO members he considers delinquent.
Biden has bound himself to the American tradition of defending NATO, “from Truman to Reagan to me.” “Every American must ask themselves: is the world safer with NATO?” he said.
Later, to reassure European journalists who questioned European governments worried about a Trump victory, Biden detailed how he helped bring Finland into the ally, then detailed how he would confront China for backing Russia during the Ukraine war, and insisted he could continue to negotiate with Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Overall, Biden spoke forcefully and fluently about foreign policy, one of his favorite topics, but the focus of the press conference wasn’t actually foreign policy, but rather reassuring Democrats and the world that Biden can still be president and beat Trump.
This shows that even Biden’s strengths are being overshadowed by doubts about his competence.
When possible, he returned to speech.
Every politician has their clichés, and Biden always reverted to his favorite talking points, a way of answering questions without necessarily having to be spontaneous or say anything new.
He went after trickle-down economics, quoting his father as having barely benefited from tax cuts for the wealthy (“I remember there wasn’t much trickle-down at my dad’s dinner table”). He praised Delaware for leading the nation in business. He said he was “the most pro-union president we’ve ever had.” He explained his decision to run for a second term with a variation of his catchphrase, “Get the job done.” He spoke at his usual length about computer chips.
Biden, who was not time-limited as he was in the debates, spoke for several minutes about his interactions with foreign leaders and continued to make the case for reelection.
Unlike in the debates, he answered questions in detail.
There was little pageantry in Biden’s answers, and the highly anticipated event at times sounded more like a think tank lecture than a voter attention-grabbing effort. Biden detailed geopolitics and reeled off number after number, at one point asking if he needed to focus on the exact figures.
Though his stumbles and stunned looks from the debate persisted, Trump showed he can field reporters’ questions on a range of issues without losing focus.
There were still regular coughs and throat clearings, and occasionally his voice dropped into a raspy whisper that recalled the hoarseness of debate night.
Overall, his presentation was a reminder that people are now watching him with an almost clinical eye, keeping an eye out for potential missteps or mistakes on his part — pressures that aren’t likely to go away so long as Biden insists on continuing his campaign.
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Riccardi reported from Denver.
